Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image display apparatus and an image display method suitable for viewing image data on a small screen.
Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, when displaying a document page image having a large number of pixels on a comparatively small image display apparatus, such as a personal computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a smartphone, a tablet computer, etc., respective portions of the page image are displayed in succession. An ordinary page image includes a plurality of portions composed of layout elements, such as paragraphs, headings, graphics, photographs, tables, and so on. To read a document, a user needs to repeat scrolling, enlarging, and reducing operations so that a desired portion of the page is displayed on the image display apparatus.
The user scrolls, enlarges, and reduces a display portion by operating an input apparatus, such as a switch, a wheel, a trackball, a joy stick, and a touch screen. In particular, many of image display apparatuses having a high-precision touch screen create a feeling of direct operation (direct manipulation), such as scrolling in the vertical, horizontal, and oblique directions through a swipe operation, enlargement through a pinch-out operation, and reduction through a pinch-in operation.
Japanese Patent No. 4094512 discusses a technique for sequentially displaying respective regions in document images on a screen with 100% magnification by two-dimensionally scrolling the screen according to the order of reading document images through a one-dimensional operation (right arrow key operation).
However, as a user sequentially reads images in a page by scrolling a display portion in a desired direction through a swipe operation, enlarging a display portion through a pinch-out operation, and reducing a display portion through a pinch-in operation, the size and position of the display portion needs to be fine-adjusted so that a display range desired by the user fits into the screen. This processing has been troublesome and complicated.
Since the technique discussed in Japanese Patent No. 4094512 sequentially displays respective regions with 100% magnification according to the order of reading in response to arrow key operations, the technique cannot adjust the display size of each region. The technique discussed in Japanese Patent No. 4094512 premises that a user performs operations by using arrow keys, and does not take into consideration a case where the user performs a swipe operation and enlarging and reducing operations.